Clever Tree Found Growing Atop a Telephone Pole

While countless other saplings were struggling to survive in the soil below, jockeying roots and shoots for their share of nutrients and sunlight, one young tree in particular found itself at the pinnacle of plant society from birth.

According to resident Neuber Pires Dias, who captured the photos above, this deft little tree has been growing for the last two years high atop a utility pole in the heart of São Bernardo do Campo, outside of Sao Paulo. While not the typical place to find a tree, nobody in town has ever thought to take it down:

“It never caused any trouble,” says Dias.

Here’s an image of the tree on Google Street View, taken in March, 2011:

Sadly, the tree’s prime spot, giving it a leg-up against its arboreal competitors, has also made it a prime target for extermination from the local energy company. A statement from AES Electropaulo, which apparently caught wind of the green renegade, indicates that the tree is slated for removal some time in the next month — ending its brief, leafy reign as the king of the pole.